Journals and Posts

Hi My name is Natzke and while I am living in Australia I and other members of my family are searching out any information on my great grandmothers family. We know they came from Kokoszkowy in Pomerania.

The Father was a General(?) in the army, Rumour has it he was wounded in battle ,came home and died at his wife's feet.C.1870His name has been various given as August Carl von Wishnowsky or some say his name was Ferdinand von Wischnowsky.

Around about this time his two elder children August and Hermine emigrated to Australia and for reasons we dont know shortly after went to New Zealand.

Due to problems(?) after the Franco Prussian war the widow of August Carl with her childen Carl, Otto, and Franz left Hamburg to emigrate to America via London. They left on the ship Fritz Reuther on 12 April 1876. Her name has been variously given as Hermine Caroline Wischnowsky nere Kreft,Wilhelmina Wischnowsky, Henrietta Wishnowsky

However according to recent information I have received from the Kokoszkowy Village association, a letter from a Mr Borys Niewinski informs us that all those emigrating on 12 April 1876 on the Fritz Reuther were "sold like stock" to an agent from a New Zealand company recruiting migrants for five pounds a head !
Accordingly the ship sailed to New Zealand not America and arrived in Wellington Harbour 4 August 1876. There was trouble with the immigration authorities - probably because they were supposed to be in AMERICA not New Zealand!

On compassionate grounds the passengers were allowed to go ashore and eventually were sought out by a Mr Halcombe for a new development he was starting at the place that later bore his name.
My great grandfather was Otto von Wischnowsky.

My great grandmother was also aboard that sailing of that ship. She was eight years old - Auguste Emilie Wapp. She married Otto when she was 15 years old ! They had 12 children. The "Wapp" family history has been written by Stephen English in 2003 It lists all the decsendants from Otto and Auguste.I have a copy opf that book
Mr grandmother was their third child Emma Amelia Auguste Wischnowsky who married my grandfather Carl Friedrich Natzke in 1886

I would like to find information of any kind on my great grandmothers children, August von Wischnosky , Hermine von Wischnowsky, Carl von Wischnowsky, and Franz von Wischnowsky.
NATZKE